Interview: Ascher, Rodney -- ROOM 237

Why do some films inspire passionate theorists and others donít? There are few people in a better position to answer that than Rodney Ascher, who spent years delving into the intricately constructed theories people have come up with describing subtexts in Stanly Kubrickís THE SHINING.†It was one of the questions I had for Ascher when I spoke to him about his documentary, ROOM 237, by phone on March 25, 2013. It was right after I confirmed with him that he had, in fact, fled a screening of THE SHINING as a kid. He did. His musings on why he was so affected, as well as why this film, and not, say 2001, is the subject of so much debate showed the same insight and pithy wit that ROOM 237 itself shows. And he was just as enigmatic when I asked about a certain coincidence, or was it synchronicity, or was it deliberate, that occurs in his documentary.